


You Hated Me From The Start

by sunnymatsu



Category: Persona 5
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-01
Updated: 2017-06-01
Packaged: 2018-11-07 14:10:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,045
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11060628
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sunnymatsu/pseuds/sunnymatsu
Summary: Canon Divergence AU -- Morgana, upon running away before infiltrating Okumura's Palace, is found to have a Palace of his own, and does not meet Haru.





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> yeah the title is from Happy Days by GHOST...//

"I'm going to show you who the useless one actually is!"

"All right then! Bring it on!"

"Ryuji, stop!"

With a stubborn hiss, Morgana stormed out of LeBlanc, his tail waving behind him.

\--

"Dammit!"

Ryuji punched the wall, yelling in anger. "The hell are we s'posed to do now!?"

"Ryuji, calm down! We just have to find him and explain everything." Ann was as emotional about the situation as anyone else. The whole team was devastated to lose their guide to the Metaverse, their most knowledgeable member, and their friend.

"I'm not sure that would work. He appeared to be quite angered." Yusuke tapped his foot on the ground. "Perhaps we should wait a while, and see if he returns on his own...?"

"No, that wouldn't work! Have you met that kitty at all!? He's stubborn as a mule!" Futaba leaned back in her chair, tapping away at her computer.

"Well, we don't exactly have a lot of options..." Makoto muttered. "Should we put up 'Lost Cat' posters?"

"Agh, fuck it! We don't need that fuzzy waste of space anyways! Let's just forget about this already!"

"Ryuji! Have some tact!" Ann moved to challenge Ryuji, but was interrupted by a loud, electronic voice.

"CANDIDATE FOUND."

Everyone in the room froze and turned to face Akira, who held up his phone to show the MetaNav.

"..."

"..."

"He has a palace."


	2. Entrance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finding out the keywords is the first step. Navigating the palace is something entirely different.

"Morgana has a PALACE!?" 

The Phantom Thieves' collective yell resounded through the cafe. Thank god it wasn't open at the moment.

"H-How on Earth!? He- He wouldn't let himself-!!" "No, but we-!" "Is he really-!?"

As the others stuttered in shock, Akira silently tapped at his phone.

"C'mon guys! You didn't see this coming? I could tell from a mile away!" Futaba's sarcastic, mocking tone was somewhat unwelcome at the moment. 

"Well, we're not all a bunch of fuckin' psychics! How the hell were we s'posed to guess this!?"

"His behavior was textbook distorted desires! The irrational anger, the refusing to accept his mistakes--"

"The hell!? What do you even know about that, man!? You didn't even join until just recently--"

"Guys! Stop fighting! I'm sure there's a rational explanation for this!"

"In the meantime, let us find Morgana's keywords."

"Yes, we need to investigate this... It could give us a much better idea on how to help him."

Upon Makoto's words, everyone seemed to be swayed to agreement. They all turned to Akira, who was still tapping on his phone. "Any luck?" Ann asked.

"The location is LeBlanc."

"Wow, you found that out fast!" Futaba seemed excited. "So, all we need now is a keyword, right?"

"That's right."

"Well, let's brainstorm it! Who's got ideas?"

"Hm... Is it... a theater?"

"CONDITIONS HAVE NOT BEEN MET."

"Why the hell would it be a theater, Ann!?"

"I-I dunno, because he think's we're making fun of him!?"

"How the hell does that make sense!?"

"Ann! Ryuji! Pull it together!" Makoto shouted. "We have to focus!"

"Perhaps... It could be a sort of Asylum?"

"CONDITIONS HAVE NOT BEEN MET."

"I think that's a bit extreme, Yusuke... But I feel as though you're on the right track."

"Ooh! Ooh! I got one! It's totally a Hospital!"

"CONDITIONS HAVE NOT BEEN MET."

"Where'd you get that idea from, Futaba?"

"Shut up! It was worth a shot!"

"Okay, hang on... Is it a prison?"

"CONDITIONS HAVE NOT BEEN MET."

"Ann, that sounds really close...."

"Well, as Morgana is a- is currently in the form of a cat, perhaps it is a... Pound, of some sort?"

"CANDIDATE FOUND."

"Nice job, Yusuke!"

"Are you guys all ready?"

"Hell yeah, if it'll get that cat to shut the hell up!"

"Ryuji! But yes, I'm ready too."

"I am prepared."

"Let's do whatever it takes."

"Alright! Level, start!"

\--

The Phantom Thieves observed their surroundings, taking everything in. They found themselves in a large, dark, dimly lit room engulfed in shadows. Before them was a long hallway stretching off to the distance, and to either side of them were cages as far as the eye could see, spanning the height of the whole wall.

"The hell? We never end up inside at the start."

"And we're already in our thief clothes... He sees us as a threat." Makoto's voice was solemn.

"Look, there's a door."

As Akira spoke, everyone turned to look behind them. There was a large, metal door, padlocked and practically welded shut on top of that.

"Looks like that's not an exit we can use..." Ann turned back to the hallway. "We have to investigate. There's only one way to go."

The thieves began to trek through the hallway, hearing nothing past their own breathing and the cold echo of their footsteps on the stone floor. They shuddered as they saw more and more large, empty cages with small food bowls tossed aside in the corners. The shadows of the bars cast long, dark stripes across the seemingly never ending hall.

"I would say that we shouldn't go in such an obvious direction, but..."

Makoto' mutters seemed to echo through the hallway, and she flinched at the painful obviousness of how exposed she and the others were.

"Ugh, why do my legs get tired even in the fuckin' Metaverse!? This place ain't even real! And how the hell is this s'posed to be a pound!? It looks way more like a fuckin' prison!"

Ryuji stretched his arms above his head, complaining loudly.  
  
"Ryuji, be quiet! What if someone hears you!?"

"There ain't nobody here, Ann! Who the hell is s'posed to hear me!?"

"That doesn't mean we shouldn't be careful!"

"Um, I may have found something, everyone."

Ryuji and Ann's bickering was cut short by Yusuke's interjection, and they turned to see what he had discovered. As the others crowded around Yusuke, they began to see what he meant.

"Dude, it's just another damn cage, what's the big deal- Oh shit."

The cage before them was quite different from the previous ones. The bars in the center were bent into a clean angle, a large hole broken through by something clearly quite powerful. There seemed to be deep gouges in the stone of the floor, ripped clean through as if the floor was nothing more than a soft feather couch. The food bowl in the back of the cage was overturned and the food pellets inside scattered everywhere along the floor, many of them crushed into a fine powder, clearly having been stepped on. Another thing that made this cage stand out from the others was the hooks on the wall; there were remnants of chains attached to them which appeared to have been ripped clean off.

"What happened here...?" Futaba held on to Akira for protection; the darkness and emptiness of the pound reminded her of her time trapped in her room.

"Did... Morgana do this?" Ann's voice wavered with uncertainty.

"I don't want to believe that, but..." Makoto was just as shaken as any of the others. Nobody wanted to believe that this was how their friend saw LeBlanc.

Akira remained as silent as ever, instead opting to bend down and pick up a scrap of ratty, black fur that had been torn off after getting caught in some of the chains.

Yusuke gasped. "That's!--"

"I don't wanna see Morgana like this, guys. Can we go home? It's game over for me, now..."

"Futaba, you know we have to get to the bottom of this. It's our duty to help our friend..." Despite Makoto's chiding, she failed to hide her obvious reluctance.

"Goddamn, dude! We don't 'have' to do anythin'! We can leave whenever the hell we want!"

"Ryuji! We have to help Morgana! No matter how stubborn you are, you have to admit that Morgana is an important, useful member of our team!"

"Ugh, shut the hell up! You don't-"

"HALT!"

The argument was stopped dead by a loud shout that echoed throughout the entire hallway. The Phantom Thieves turned quickly to see who had spoken, trying to decipher the identities of the mysterious figures that approached.

"Thought you could escape your cages, huh?"


	3. The Wardens

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shadows are representative of a person's cognition of another; they do not always bear a resemblance to their real-life counterpart.

The figures before the phantom thieves stepped forward into the warm haze of a flourescent light; revealing their forms. There were two figures, one with short brown hair and one with long blonde hair, tied up into two ponytails. They both wore dark, gray coats with white button up shirts beneath them, and a utility belt strapped around their waist. Their tall, laced up boots made an ominous clacking sound as they walked closer, and the phantom thieves recognized their faces with growing horror. These two figures were clearly Makoto and Ann, faces dark and eyes a glowing, shadowy yellow.

"Is this really how he sees us?"

"I don't believe it..."

"STAND UP STRAIGHT, PRISONERS!"

"We are wardens here. Return to your cage at once."

"Goddamn, this place is totally a fuckin' prison, not a 'pound'!"

"Ryuji, that's not our priority right now!" Makoto seemed exasperated as she turned to face her shadow self. "We are not prisoners here. We are here to find Morgana."

The shadow wardens snickered. "Morgana? We've never heard of any 'Morgana'."

"Are you perhaps here to find that useless, sickening beast?"

"If so, you are wrong to give it a name. It's not anywhere near worthy of anything like that!"

"Just tell us where our friend is." Yusuke's voice was stern, demanding, but the shadows before him laughed mockingly.

"You call that abomination a friend?" They giggled to each other. "That monster isn't fit to be seen, let alone cared for! You should just turn back now, and run back to your cells before we make you."

"We ain't from cells, ya fuckin' idiots! Just let us through! You can't 'make us' do shit!"

"Well, you certainly don't look like you're all that strong." "Perhaps you bonded with the beast because you are useless beasts as well...?"

"We ain't beasts! Goddamn, just fuckin-- Argh!!"

"Ryuji, calm down! We have to go about this in a sensible manner--"

Yusuke was interrupted by another chorus of echoing footsteps, seeming to appear out of nowhere at all. The group turned to see two more figures behind them- Quickly identifying them as Akira and Yusuke's shadow selves, donned in the same guard outfits that the shadow girls had worn. These two shadows were silent, their faces expressionless; they seemed to feel nothing at all as they stood before the thieves, blocking any escape from behind.

"Shit! We're surrounded!"

"Don't lose hope- There's only four of them, and six of us!"

Despite Makoto's encouragement, the team was clearly discouraged, Futaba clinging desperately to Akira's side.

"So, prisoners, let's get you to your cages."

"We ain't prisoners! We're the Phantom Thieves!"

"Never heard of them."

"Aargh! Just- Just fuckin'--"

"Everyone! Look!"

As Futaba shouted, the thieves all glanced to where she pointed- seeing an opportunity. The hallway just a little bit ahead turned off sharply, for the first time they had seen since entering.

Ryuji made a move to run towards it, past the wardens, but Akira stopped him.

"Hold on."

Akira reached into his pocket and retrieved a small gray orb, tossing it to the ground as a loud hissing noise began to emanate from it. The wardens moved forwards, anticipating the thieves' escape, but were caught as the orb began to emit a haze of blinding smoke. The Thieves seized the opportunity Akira gave them, and they raced past the coughing wardens towards the corner.

"What are we going to do now!?"

"We have to find somewhere to hide!"

"But this whole damn place is just cages!"

"We don't have any other options!"

The Thieves found themselves rounding another corner, hoping desperately that a hiding place would show up. And, lo and behold, after a few minutes of sprinting and exhaustion, they came across a metal, yet unlocked, door.

"Finally! Goddamn, we've been running for AGES!"

"But what if it's a trap?"

"We don't really have much of a choice at this point, Ann..." Makoto, as the advisor, was correct. The team had no other options, and they could swear they heard the echoes of the wardens chasing after them. Ryuji slammed the door open and the team gathered to peer inside.

"The hell are you doin'?"


End file.
